Fan
Date1850-1870
OriginEurope
MediumIvory (Sticks), Parchment (Mount), Paint, Gilt Paint, Wood, Mother-of-Pearl (Hinge)
DimensionsLength: 10 1/2"; Width When Open: 20"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1960-165
DescriptionFolding fan in revival design with pierced, painted, silvered and gilded wide ivory sticks with a Mother-of-Pearl rivet at the hinge. The main ground of the sticks is remeniscent of a garden trellis surrounding by small flowers in gold and silver. The paper mount is painted in a design of five vigenettes illustrating young adults at play and leisure. From left to right, they depict a group of two men and two women playing instruments, a young woman in white in the fore ground walking away from a couple in the background, a couple in conversation with a young woman seated at their feet, a servant in white facing away from a couple in the background, and a group of four ladies (one with her face in the lap of the other) with a young man seated to the side. The fan is edged in gilt tape and the images are surrounded by small sprays of flowers with two purple prders with gilt embellishments at the extreme right and left of the mount. The reverse is decorated with elaborate painted scrollwork in gilt with pink flowers and purple accents. The reverse of the front facing guard, along the left edge of the fan is decorrated with heavy scroll work, a cherub face, and an urn.
Construction History:
1. Initially Constructed 1850-1870
2. Unknown Date: It is likely that the decoration at the back of the front facing guard was a later addition.
3. Unknown Date: The reverse of the fan shows scarring from previous patches that were removed during conservation
Label TextAlthough this fan was designed in an eighteenth-century style, the body shapes and posture indicate a later date. These women have hourglass figures and posture characteristic of the second and third quarters of the nineteenth century. The clothing is similarly misunderstood and mixed styles from the earlier period.
